I help if asked and encourage as much as I can. Great works have been created in our Journal challenge by wool diarists.

"A page of my journal is like a cake of portable soup. A little may be diffused into a considerable portion."

James Boswell

I love this quote because my own journal rugs act very much like this, letting me get in touch with all sorts of amazing untapped creativity that feed me all year long, a rich and thriving wanderland. I wonder what it will do for you?

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Notice the top one looks a little more yellow and the bottom one looks a little bluer.

This is because we are comparing them to each other.

They are the same value and will blend nicely.

These are great for landscapes.

Method:

Formulas have been mixed together with boiling water, poured in a dye bath over a wet 1/8th yd natural wool. Heat was added, then citric acid or vinegar after about 10 minutes or so. Wait until water clears. Rinse well, dry in dryer or hang to dry.

Monday, December 15, 2014

Not all sets of colours make good mixers.
Recently to my surprise I've noticed people employing the red blue green system for subtractive colour use. Don't worry about the use of the word subtractive. That just means using pigments like paint or dye, inks. It is describing how when we put pigment on something it subtracts some colour from our perception while other colour is left.

The red blue green system is about additive colour. This is the system that operates our computer screens and TV and in stage lighting. These three colours create every colour on a screen. Add them all in and they create white.

We all know when we put all our pigments together in the dye pot we are likely to get black.
These two systems additive ( light ) subtractive ( applied piments) while both about colour and mixing couldn't be more polar. One theory cannot be applied to the others use.

Using additive colour primaries ( red , blue , green) doesn't get you good full colour wheel results to mix them in a subtractive application, like with our dyes.

If you want to be a full colour array mixer start off with the subtractive primaries that have been successfully in use by visual artists for donkey years.
Turquoise ( Cyan), Yellow, Red Violet ( Magenta) and Black.

The cleaner each of these subtractive mixers are, the better separation you'll get between the colours you can create to make a colour wheel or mix in the dye pot.

And that said you can get even more beautiful and expansive colourations by employing the addition of orange, violet and green to these 4 basic colours. Most artworks are reprinted using a 7 colour printer because the colours are more accurate to the original creation.

This full colour use is what I like to employ as a dyer and now a mixer of dyes for sale.
More mixing choices means better colour up to a point.Our 14 Majic Carpet Dye colours are a great system for artistic and beautiful colour mixing.

They are a bargain right now for US customers because our Canadian $ is weak.... it's like getting 20% off!

Here's a beautiful colour to get your in the mood for Christmas.

Hanchett's Vermont Barn

Hanchett’s Vermont Barn

4/32 tsp. Red

2/64 tsp. Moss Green

1/64 tsp. Chocolate Brown

I dyed this sample over 1/4 yd unless otherwise stated in the recipe.

I immersed the wet wool in a generous dye bath with the dye solution ( formula ) already added. please add 1/32 tsp of citric acid at after the wool has been swimming with the dye solution for 5 minutes. Heat until water is clear.

Please note red is also very difficult to photograph accurately. I’ve done my best but for certain reds the richness, nor the relative cool or blueness of them does not show through.

This formula was dyed over 1/8th yd of natural wool using a Microwave Dye Bath as follows.

Add 6 cups of boiling water in a microwaveable safe vessel,
I use an 8 cup measuring cup because it has a handle that does not heat up. I
like to boil my water on the stove, it is a lot faster for me than using the
microwave.

Wet wool in synthrapol or jet dry.

Add dyes to boiling water stir very well, add wool to water,
stir for 1 minute.

Place in microwave for 2 minutes.

Remove, stir, add acid in the form of vinegar (1tbsp.) or citric
acid, ( 1/32 tsp.)

Stir more, place back in the microwave for 1 minute, remove
and stir, repeat until water is clear.

By all means use a conventional
dye bath to create this color.

Using the chart below the Blue and Gray Formula for 1 yard of wool would look like this:

Monday, December 8, 2014

You can make a real difference in your hooked rugs by dyeing.
You'll make colours only you can.
It's a special realization when you know you can make any colour you wish.
The world is your oyster then.
Here are some tips:

Each of us has looked at something and wanted to create the color we see in the dye pot. What do we need to really SEE when we look at our inspiration to get going ?

The color:

What color family does this item belong to ?

This first question lets us know what dye to start with as we start our new formula.

The intensity of the color:

Is the color dull, bright or somewhere between ?

This reveals what to add to the first color to create the proper intensity.

You might need to add the opposite color, or if you you desire a deadened or very calming color you need to add black. If you want a brighter colour you need to look at colours that surround your colour family of your item. eg Yellow will make red, orange, and green brighter.

Is this color warm or cool ?

The color you seek has a temperature. You may need to add a warmer compliment or a cooler compliment (opposite colors on the color wheel) to get where you want to go. To explain, if you needed to reduce the intensity of a color but still have it be rich, you use a complimentary color to reduce it. A purple that is vibrant but needs to be calmed down and warmed at the same time would benefit from the addition of yellow orange rather than yellow, it’s true compliment. If it needed to be reduced and cooled, adding yellow green rather than yellow would aid you.

The value of the color :

Is the color light, medium or dark valued ?

This tells us how much dye to use. Of course the amount changes according to how much wool is dyed. If you dyed 1 yd. of wool with 1/32 tsp of dye and you dyed 1/4 yd. with 1/32 tsp of dye the two values would be quite different.

Here are some colours I matched of beach treasures. I know you can do this too!

Friday, December 5, 2014

I used the Zero Waste rule and there were no remnants to toss into landfill.

They are all for sale at Wandaworks. These one of a kind garments are hand dyed and sewn by me, I can't tell you how wonderful these all feel, made from the same piece of 100% wool jersey from Italy. They look great on everyone! They are on a size 18 dressmakers dummy and look good right down to size 4. Can you imagine swanning around in one of these joyous beauty this winter? Put it on your wish list!

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

I made this a couple of weeks ago and I'm so pleased with it!
Using a wonderful Italian knit wool in a lightweight with a great soft hand, I cut and sewed these gorgeous jackets, they can be worn many ways including upside down. And then I dyed it.It will be for sale soon, I have two colourways right now, each one I make is wonderfully unique, just like you.

Friday, November 28, 2014

Look for some wool that is already on the way
to being darker.I like to use a
four value range on the value scale for this type of workie: #4 #5 #6 #7.

It helps to save on dye
if you are starting out with medium values for dyeing darks.

Here are a group of close values, use
these to judge your selection.

Gather up different wool that fits a “mostly”,
they might be mostly green, mostly grey, mostly brown... just choose the mostly
that suits your purpose or what you have on hand. Use textures and little bits
you might have leftover too. No need to worry about running out. Just make sure
they fit your chosen “mostly”

Here are the Mostly Greys for Old
Stormy before dyeing

METHOD

Wet your wool as usual with synthrapol or the
wool wetter of your choice, shampoo without conditioner will work if you have
nothing else.

Chose one dye from your selection that will get
you the results you desire. Keep in mind what happens to certain colours when
they are dyed with another, for instance, blue dyed over brown becomes tealish.
Maybe you will want to add some black dye to deaden or some brown dye to dull
according to what you need your dark areas to look like. Make that judgment as
you dye. It takes about 1/2 tsp of darker dyes to make this much wool darker
and keep in mind lighter dyes such as yellow will not make a dark colour for
you.

A series of blue greenish wool over-dyed with
black will give you a cool black. For a warmer one look for a “mostly” that are
brown.

Old Stormy

Gather 6 pieces of random grey textures and
solids equaling 8 oz or 3/4 of a yd. Arrange them from light to dark and add
them in that order. This will let more dye go into the lighter wool and less
for the darker woolkeeping the
marriage close in values.

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

So often we are reminded to keep on track, to be focused, to get to the point.

A mind that can meander is a gift.

Wandering off the topic can bring us to a new vista to explore.

Let's exercise our wandering mind.

Think of a word, write it down. NOTE: Don't think at length about it, you need to automatically respond with the first thing that comes to mind, and continue to do so to tap into your wisdom.

Book

Then write down the next word that comes to mind.

Book - shelf

Continue to add words until this feels complete, maybe 12 or so words.

Book

Shelf

wait

time

clock

tick

peace

quiet

blanket

bed

read

rest

recycle

Now look where your mind took you, hmmm looks like I need some recuperative time still.

Have fun with this.

How this helps with rug hooking:

Being able to let your mind wander is a way to connect to your innate intelligence. It is so useful when a problem arises in your rug and it is hard to make a decision. Even if you don't think you know what you want or cannot decide what you want that innate intelligence knows. This exercise is a conduit for it all to come out.

After all every part of making our rugs is a series of decisions, all creative endeavours are. Let yourself find out what you really want with your rug.

“Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It’s self-conscious, and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can’t try to do things. You simply must do things” – Ray Bradbury

Friday, November 21, 2014

And today my Wandaworks girls are coming and we are packing our wares and setting up our table at the Pottawatomi Spinners and Weavers Guild's Annual Show & Sale at the Owen Sound and North Grey Union Public Library. Owen Sound, Ontario. Come and see us there Sat. Nov 22 from 10:00 to 4:00, pm and Sunday Nov 23 from noon til 4:00 pm.

We will have Majic Carpet Dyes and WandaWear in the form of hand dyed wool jackets scarves and silk ones too... and some art yarn fingerless gloves.

Wool of course for spinning, hooking, knitting and weaving and applique and quilting. All dyed in gorgeous colourways. We will also have needle punching tools and demos.

And a whole assortment of deliciously dyed Gubbins to include in your art yarn.And todays formula for Majic Carpet Dyes ( all the dyeing above was accomplished with them)

Saffron

Saffron

2/32 tsp Orange

1/32 tsp. + 1/64 tsp. Red

1/64 tsp. Seal Brown

Method:

Over ¼ yd of natural wool in a dye bath with Majic Carpet
dyes (though you can use which ever dyes you choose for possibly similar though
not exact results)

Wet wool with an additive such as shampoo, Jet Dry or
Synthrapol to prepare it to dye.Heat a receptacle of water to dye in, for the smooth dyeing of ¼ yd use
approx. 1 gallon of water.Add dye
formula into the dye bath, making sure it is dissolved.

Add wool. Heat
at simmer for several minutes stirring for smooth application of dye. Add in 1/32
to 1/4tsp citric acid depending how dark the colour, about 10 minutes into the
process or until most of the dye is taken up. The latter is what I do. Continue
heating until the water is perfectly clear or per your own directives.Rinse well, use dryer or hang to dry.

And now I'm taking a week or so off for Grammy duty, what bliss! I'll see you soon!